pat and jim are office today. there's no word as to what caused that incident that killed two metro workers. >> it happened this morning between the rockville and shady grove metro stations. two workers were installing safety equipment of all things on a track tha was closed to regular service for the night. the accident disrupted the morning rush hour for many commuters as service was shut down while the crash was investigated. 49-year-old jeff garrard and 68-year-old sung oh had worked for the transit agency since 1990 and 1998. both men from montgomery county. this is just the latest in a string of fatalities at metro. chris gordon is live with more. hello, chris. >> good evening. the investigator in charge here at the national transportation safety board just gave us a briefing. here's the very latest.

there were two separate crews working on the same track last night. the question is did either know the other was working there? there were the two men in the track bed that you just mentioned who were killed. there was a separate crew, four men, a track crew who were riding in a truck fitted to ride the rails. they were traveling from shady grove to rockville. they were in a truck that was traveling in reverse, backwards. in other words, they were in the cab facing shady grove, traveling to rockville. the question is, what were their sight lines? the rearview mirrors on the truck hit the two men basically backing up in reverse. they hit the two men in the track bed. this raises a lot of question. first and foremost, w there a critical breakdown in communications? the accident occurred at 1:45 a.m. a six-member metro wor crew was

installing new train control equipment in the track bed. this high-rail truck equipped with special wheels that allow it to drive on the track when electricity is shut off had transported the work crew and its equipment here. somehow, the truck struck two employees working on the track bed. one died at the scene. the other was takeno an area hospital where he died of his injuries. >> four individuals who are also at the scene were taken out of service, we call it, which means that they were taken to be terviewed and have drug and alcohol testing. that's standard operating procedure. >> a team of ntsb investigators will determine how it happened. they were on the scene measuring track, taking pictures and then interviewing the four surviving members of the metro work crew. >> four members of the investigation team. we're in the process of meeting with the individuals that may have knowledge or be able to provide some information to the safety board in an effort to conduct our investigation.

>> ntsb investigators are looking into whether the crews had contacted metro's operational control center. whether either of the crews knew the other were on the same track. how fast that truck was traveling, why it was traveling in reverse, did it have a beeper system, a warning system, wh? was it on? was it sounded. and the two men in the track bed, had they put out a warning beacon, a light, on the track. all these questions remain to be answered. >> chris gordon, thank you. this deadly accident is just the latest in a string of incidents involving metro. december, a team of safety inspectors was nearly hit by a train that was traveling at full speed. in november, three workers were hurt when one train hit another in the west falls church rail yard. in september, a train hit and killed a technician in virginia. in august, a piece of equipment

hit and killed a worker at the vienna station. last june, nine people were killed when two trains collided on the red line. in january 2007, more than 20 people were injured when a greenline train derailed. and in november 2006, two metro employees died after bei hit by an empty yellow line train. today's accident on the metro tracks made things pretty tricky for some redline commuters. all morning long there were delays along the redline. now, as a result trains were only traveling between glennmont and twinbrook. for many riders, news of this latest crash was of great concern. >> they're charging loads of money for this stuff. it's been around for a long time. it's kind of a reliable service and everything. you know, you can't have all these people being killed. >> if somebody got killed -- [ inaudible ]

>> just after noon, full service resumed on the red line. metro says there are currently no delays. be sure to stay with news4 on air and online for continuing coverage of the deadly metro accident. coming up on "news4 at 5," pat collins will have emotional reaction from the victims' families. new at 4:00, a potential break in the case of a missing virginia tech student. police are investigating the discovery of a young woman's remains on a farm near charlottesville. police say the body was found on thanchorage farm at about 8:30 this morning. the farm is about ten miles from the university of virginia campus where 20-year-old morgan harrington was last seen. she disappeared from the parking lot of a metallica concert at e johnaul jones arena last october. harrington's parents are headed to the farm to see if this is their daughter. police are expected to hold a news conference at 5:00 p.m. fire investigators are still trying to determine what caused a massive fire. it destroyed a northern virginia

home and left two men dead. the flames broke out at a single-family home in the 5600 block of hemming avenue in the north springfield area of fairfax county. when firefighters arrived they found heavy flames and thick smoke. the two men were also found inside. however, crews believe the fire started in the basement, then spread to the first floor, causing the floor to collapse. the names of the victims have not been released. there are reports they are an elderly man and his adulson. the relief and recovery mission continues in haiti, and today we're getting a look at new video of the moment the earthquake hit. a dozen surveillance cameras in an office building captured the images. the owner didn't realize he had the pictures until now because the quake nearly destroyed the video system. ron allen has more now from port-au-prince. >> reporter: it's just before 5:00 p.m., almost quitting time, when workers at the security company realize something terrible is happening. the room shakes violently. the workers run for their lives.

outside, panic on the street. the ground is rocking and rolling. for some 20 horrifying seconds. when it finally stops, the office building stood but half the buildings in the capital were rubble. now haiti's leaders say they need $3 billion and ten years to rebuild. groups here struggle to hold back quake survivors desperate for food and water. 1 out of every 9 people here has now place to call home. with conditions and makeshift camps getting worse. >> we're movingrom emergency and acute response to tackling the health threats and demands now facing those who have survived this earthquake. >> reporter: still, some hope for a miracle. the search endures for students and faculty members for lynne university in florida. they arrived on a mission to help haiti's poor the day before the quake. neither the community more the families will confirm reports

that a body has been recovered from the rubble. with each passing day, many more people are expressing concerns that haiti's flight will not be near the top of the world's agenda much longer. ron allen, nbc news, port-au-prince. >> the death toll is now estimated at nearly 200,000 with another 194,000 injured. nearly two weeks into that deadly quake, and rescuers are still finding survivors. a 14-year-old girl was pulled from the debris of her house alive today. rescuers say she was saved by her bed when the wall and roof collapsed on top of her and she was lucky to have water nearby. there are lots of ways you can help the people of haiti. log on to news4 and you can find a list of legitimate organizations that are collecting donations. just search "help" once you get to the site. there's also a link in the middle of the home page. temperatures continue to drop across the region. and there's a possibility of snow for the weekend. veronica johnson has more on

what we can expect in our first forecast. hi, veronica. >> hi, eun and kimberley. we're getting of the details. we'll be tweaking that forecast, some snow possibilities for the upcoming weekend. as far as today goes, we're seeing a weak little disturbance come through the area. reports of a little bit of sleet just an hour ago around montgomery county. rockville area. right now we've got some light showers that are left around aspen hill heading toward loral. kettering also reporting some light showers and also heading toward chesapeake beach. light snow that continues out west. accumulations of one to three inches are expected for garrett county, maryland, and the high spots of west virginia. 17-degree temperature change from yesterday at the same time. we're in the 40s today. we'll crash back down to the 20s, the low 30s by later tonight. your fast forecast, more sunshine coming our way tomorrow, but, again, we'll talk about the possibility of some snow coming up for the weekend.

u president barack obama will go before the nation tomorrow night to deliver his state of the union address. he received a devastating projection on the economy. a new report suggests unemployment will remain at or above 10% for the rest of the year. steve handelsman is live on capitol hill with details. >> thanks. good evening. next year is not looking too good either according to this report from the cbo, the congressional budget office here on the hill. it raises the stakes, the political stakes, for democrats here on capitol hill and for the democratic presidential who comes up here to the hill tomorrow night to explain to americans how he plans to deal now with our ongoing political crisis. terrible news for the nation and terrible political news for president obama. unemployment will average 10.1% for the rest of this year and remain high at 9.5% through next year. says the non-partisan congressional budget office. >> we project that the

unemployment rate will not return to its long-run sustainable level of 5% until 2014. >> reporter: republicans blame the democrats. >> americans aren't happy with the administration's approach. >> reporter: did barack obama and top democrats make a mistake? when they turned to health care and to global warming. >> huge miscalculations. >> reporter: analyst charley cooke says voters got angry. >> every day, every moment, that the president and congress spent on health care or climate change was a minute a day not spent on addressing the economic problems. >> reporter: top democrats today claimed they multitasked and prevented worse job loss. >> we have stared down at the abyss and we've drawn back and w we are starting to regain our stride as we should. >> reporter: unlike the president's address to congress last year that kicked off an ambitious agenda, tomorrow night's will be focused. >> he'll discuss getting our

economy moving again. >> reporter: and on programs he once called priorities like climate change initiatives, the president will propose a spending freeze. but republicans and some democrats say a partial spending freeze is nowhere near enough to fix our huge deficit or to stop barack obama's political slide. i'm steve handelsman, news4 live from capitol hill. >> thank you, steve. marylanders are sing good-bye to a long-time politician. former center charles muthis died yesterday. he quickly gained the reputation as a republican party maverick. he served until 1968 and then was elected to the senate where he served until 1987. he was known for being a liberal republican, a champion of civil rights and protector of the chesapeake bay. a rare combination. "news4 at 4" is just getting

started. terror threat. next at 4:15, president obama's new response plan aimed at preventing a biological attack using weapons of mass destructid destructi destruction. at 4:30, new details about the death of the father of nancy kerrigan. and at 4:45, the alarming new statistics about pregnancy and teenagers.

a federal commission is giving congress and the white house a failing grade when it comes to preparing the nation against weapons of mass destruction. the group says the u.s. seems to be moving backward in its effort while the threat is getting worse.

tracie potts has more. >> reporter: a federal panel says swine flu vaccine delays were a big hint that the u.s. is not ready for a bio terror attack. >> with h1n1, we knew it was coming. we had about a six-month notice. if this is a terrorist attack or most of the forms of natural attacks, we aren't going to have any six months notice. >> reporter: the commission on weapons of mass destruction believe the biological weapon will hilikely hit the u.s. in t next four years and give the government on "f" on being ready. 9/11 commissioners tell congress instead of blowing up buildings, al qaeda's organizer simpler plans like the christmas airline attack. >> if they can't organize an effort to fly airplanes into the world trade tower, they can get one person to get on an airplane and try to blow it apart. so our guard has to stay up. >> reporter: the white house

says president obama will outline a faster, better response in tomorrow's state of the union. and the administration says it's working with europe and other nations to beef up security. >> it is a big priority and we know that it is one of the things that terrorists could use in the future or indeed even now. >> reporter: preparing now for an attack that experts say could happen soon. the commission actually gave the government high marks for securing dangerous pathogens and for designating someone in the white house to deal with the threat. tracie potts, nbc news, washington. a white house spokesman says mr. obama' goal is to see that quick, reliable and affordable a a antidotes will be available. a startling discovery. 43-year-old lloyd woodson is accuseof having a cache of high-powered weapons. among those weapons, authorities

found a grenade launer. two assault rifles and a map of an unnamed military installation. bond is set at $75,000 for woodson. investigors are still trying to figure out why he had the weapons. an fbi spokesman says he appears to have no terrorist connections. congress is considering new legislation to cut down on the dangers from tanning beds. a bill under consideration would set federal rules limiting the amount of uv rays the beds can give off. the legislation would restrict the length of time customers could spend in the beds. carolyn maloney calls tanning beds cancer coffins. >> it is an epidemic. skin cancer is growing. it is dangerous. we need to act. >> last year the world health organization reclassified tanning beds as car is cinogear.

the school board is considering more than $100 million in cuts to its budget. the county school board is proposing adding a $100 participation fee per student per sport. but the estimated $900,000 that could be generated would not be earmarked to fund athletics. it would go into a general fund. hearings are being held tonight and tomorrow night at luther jackson middle school in falls church. the hearings begin at 6:00 p.m. we're following breaking news in takoma park. police are searching for a suspect in a sex assault. campus authorities want everyone to stay inside during the search. police have sent out an alert to students and staff. we'll bring you updates as more information becomes available. ahead on "news4 at 4," across the border. what a high-profile politician is now proposing be done with undocumented felons. plus, president obama makes

his pick who hs rallying behind for this year's super bowl. and it's been one year now since the birth of those octuplets that captivated the nation. now their mommy is back in the headlines.

only nine more days until we say good-bye to d.c.'s favorite panda. the 4 1/2-year-old giant panda will be shipped back to china on february 4th. he'll be traveling via fedex along with a 2-year-old female friend from the atlanta zoo. for those who want to say good-bye, friends of the national zoo will be hosting a farewell event this saturday from 11:00 to 3:00. that's going to be a crazy time. at the gym, a guy said, i heard we're getting eight inches of snow on friday night. wrong. >> well, it's way too early to talk about amounts. what it does look like, we'll have a little bit of accumulation snowfall. but the guidance that we look at seems to be trending the storm further south, further down in the southeast area. so we may not be getting much. >> in the meantime we're dealing with this. >> right. this was from a weather-watcher.

this is downstream of shepherd's town where they have moderate flooding taking place. point of rocks, moderate flooding. up to 21 feet there, cresting early tomorrow morning. same thing, the crest expected right here around shepherd's town area. outside right now, we've had a mixture of a little bit of sunshine today mixing in with quite a few clouds tomorrow. the windchill is at 37 degrees. let's quickly go to the radar. with this weather feature that's been coming through today it has been sparking some light rain showers. and also some scattered flurries. winchester, front royal. and the high spots further west. you can see the snow on the ground. 29, fairmont, west virginia. it's been a little bit of white stuff on the ground. more, too, in ready, west virginia. this is around central areas of west virginia. on the satellite and radar loop, low pressure here. there's the weather feature coming through tonight. it will be colder tonight than it was last night. dropping down to the 20s.

we're at 44 now. 20s in chicago. around areas of ohio, temperatures already in the 20s. here's your futurecast the next 48 hours. that weather front comes through. the snow starts to die out. sunshine for the day tomorrow. then on thursday, we'll be partly sunny and mostly cloudy for friday. don't think we're going to see probably our first flakes with that storm system until probably very late friday after the evening rush. for this evening we're breezy and chilly with temperatures in the upper 30s. by tomorrow we'll start out in the 20s across the area. mid-40s, that's really seasonable for tomorrow. plenty of sunshine tomorrow. clouds on thursday. we'll be partly sunny. friday, look for developing snowfall. again, mainly during the overnight period and through saturday right now. we'll have more on this coming up in just a few. we're following new stories for "news4 at 5."

john is working on a very happy homecoming. hi, john. >> this is a good story. it's a family from northern virginia that's been struggling to bring back an adopted baby. since the earthquake hit in haiti l haiti, all of the adoption papers were destroyed. we have the story coming up for you. >> sounds like a very lovely story. that's on "news4 at 5." make sure you follow "news4 at 4" on facebook and twitter. we're always posting news, weather and traffic reports. search "news4 at 4." >> we can both get out the tissues for that one. there's much more ahead at "news4 at 4." the investigation continues. what we're learn about the man arrested in connectionith the death of olympic medalist nancy kerrigan's father. plus, the new details we're learning abouthe high-profile murder case of a 2-year-old

girl. and the rules of the road for truck and bus drivers while operating th

welcome back to "news4 at 4." i'm kimberly suiters. >> i'm eun yang. some of the stories we're following at this hour a deadly accident takes the lives of two metro workers. the men were working on the redline tracks in rockville when

they were struck by a maintenance truck. inspectors are investigating. the redline is now operating in both directions. two men died in a house fire this morning on hemming avenue in springfield, virginia. investigators believe the fire started in the basement and then spread to the first floor causing part of the floor to collapse. the victims' names have not been released and no word yet on the cause of this fire. the parents of a virginia tech student who went missing last year have been called to a farm near charlottesville. police are investigating the discovery of skeletal remains. morgan harrington disappeared from the parking lot of a metallica concert last october. now our top story at 4:30. new details about the death of the father of olympic medalist nancy kerrigan. kerrigan's brother is charged with assault in this case. >> this tragedy is the latest in the string of troubles suffered by the family.

>> reporter: suffering all over again. nancy kerrigan showed up at her parents' house monday. the crime scene where her father, dan kerrigan, just tied. now nancy kerrigan's own brother, mark, is charged with assault in their father's death. in court monday, mark kerrigan openly wept. the suspect in a tragic family feud, a family that's been through so much already. >> why? >> reporter: 16 years ago this month, it was nancy kerrigan in tears. clubbed in the knees while practicing for the winter olympics. tanya harding later admitted she covered up the attack by her ex-husband and her body guards. >> nancy had the image of being america's sweetheart. she was very graceful. once she was attacked, there was no question that the american public was pulling for her. >> reporter: who knew it would

get so much harder than this? pulling through that nightmare only to face this one. >> you couldn't ask for a nicer family. i mean, you've seen what the family has been through over the years. the ups and downs. >> reporter: for mark kerrigan, mostly downs. as nancy skated on and built a family, he was getting in trouble. he had a long criminal record, including assault and jailtime. and now this. nancy kerrigan was so strong in 1994, going on to win silver in the winter games. strength she'll need again with her brother behind bars and her father gone. >> that was jeff rosen reporting. the family released a statement saying their focus is on mourning their loss and horing his life and his many contributions. there was a guilty plea in orlando yesterday from casey anthony, but not in the murder case. anthony is accused of murdering her daughter back in the summer

of 2008. yesterday in court, she admitted that she passed stolen checks thatelonged to her friend, amy huizenga. anthony was seen cashing the checks and shopping. in the process, she drained her friend's bank account of $654. >> i'm sorry for what i did. i take complete and full responsibility for my actions. and i'd like to sincerely apologize to amy. i wish i would have been a better friend. >> casey anthony was sentenced to time served for the check fraud charge. she has already been in jail for 15 months awaiting trial on charges that s murdered her daughter, caylee. a special needs teacher in new mexico is facing some tough questions after taping a student's mouth shut and sending a note home about the incident. the student said she taped his

mouth shut. his mother received this note from the teacher that day. it reads, santiago is suffering from diarrhea of the mouth. i taped it shut. the teacher added a smily face. she claims it was a joke. the teacher is now on paid leave. california governor arnold schwartzeneger has a rather unusual idea for easing prison overcrowding the state and cutting prison costs. he suggests shipping undocumented felons to prisons in mexico. california spends more than 8 billion a year incarcerating felons. the governor believes the state could save $1 billion if undocumented inmates were sent to prisons in mexico. prisons built by the state. >> we pay them to build the prisons down in mexico. and then we have those undocumented immigrants be down there in a prison.

and with the prison guards and all this, it would halve the cost. an exhibit of 83 photographs of former cuban leader fidel castro will open this week at a gallery in mexico city. highlights include pictures of ernest hemmingway and walking in new york's central park. mexico is the second country to host the exhibition after cuba. the director that gallery hosting the exhibit says he hopes it will travel to other parts of the world. just ahead on "news4 at 4," place your bets. >> president obama is getting in on the action and making his pick for super bowl sunday. plus, it's bigger and better. we'll give you a sneak peek at the newest innovation by apple. and the octomom is back and says she's better than ever one year after the birth of her

are you making it easier for bacteria

to grow on your dentures? you are if you use toothpaste instead of soaking them in polident toothpaste is abrasive on dentures look, scratches where bacteria can collect and grow and bacteria can cause bad breath that's why i recommend replacing toothpaste with polident only polident is proven to clean without scratching

and kills 99.9% of odor causing bacteria don't scratch your dentures clean use polident every day president barack obama didn't waste time in making his pick for the super bowl. the president is rooting for the new orleans saints. over the indianapolis colts. that's not a surprise. mr. obama said the saints are the underdogs and he's sympathetic to what the people of new orleans had to deal with in the last few years. >> you've got to root for the saints. >> i think so. >> and the colts are so good. >> it' going to be a great game. les check in with veronica johnson. some people are saying the weather is going to be crazy.

>> not too crazy. we've got a couple of days to keep our eye on that storm that hasn't even materialized yet down south. right now we've got a weak weather system that's coming through the area. mostly cloudy and a wintry-looking sky. when the sun sets, it still will be mostly cloudy. then it's going to become partly cloudy as this weather system heads east and out of the area. mostly sunny skies expected by tomorrow morning. we'll see scattered light showers south of i-66 and light snow showers, too, areas far to the west. front royal and especially the high spots of west virginia. there's been some accumulation and that winter weather advisory has been up for preston county and west virginia. 30 to 31 degrees. that's how we'll start the day tomorrow with a fair amount of sunshine. so we're going to go mostly clear. drop down into the 20s to around 30 degrees. then mid-40s once again tomorrow. with more sunshine, though. a real pretty day coming our way.

again, for friday it looks like a system that's going to kick off some snow for us as it passes just to the south of the area. some more snow could continue through saturday. so maybe some light accumulation. you might want to keep your plans loose for the upcoming weekend. e eun? >> thank you. when we come back on "news4 at 4," "news 4 your health". >> teen pregnancy and what has doctors concerned. and what you need to know about paying less for debit cards. and what truck and bus drivers can no longer do while they're out on the road. hey, ricky, i don't know if you know this,

but there are creatures from outer space right here in aruba, and they look just like real people. oh, really, i didn't know this. they're always smiling, relaxed, unnaturally friendly. and they'll do anything to lull you into feeling at home. it's inhuman, it's a trick, ricky. don't fall for it, i've seen it in the movies. let me get you a drink. oh my god, they got him too.

we're following breaking news in takoma park right now. police have locked down the campus of montgomery college while they search for a suspect in a sex assault. these are pictures from chopper 4. we're told the assault happened this afternoon on campus. authorities want everyone to stay inside during the search. they're asking student whose are not on campus right now to stay away. police have sent out annerlert to students and staff. after a decade of decline, the teen pregnancy rate is rising again. it's sparking a debate as to why more young girls are having babies and whether it's the start of a new and disturbing

trend. erica edwards has our report. >> reporter: the teen years are a time of firsts. first love, first car, and increasingly first child. >> teen pregnancy rates have actually jumped for the first time in the last few decades. >> reporter: data has been released that show the number of pregnant teens rose 3% in 2006. that's a reversal from sharp declines of 40% seen during the 1990s. >> that progress really came to a halt in the 2000s. >> reporter: heather says the focus on abstinence-only education didn't work. she suggests adding birth control 101 to sex ed. >> it helps teens delay sexual tv, help them to have fewer sexual partners and helps them into use contraceptives more cy consistently.

>> an increase in teen birth rates could either mean that fewer teens are getting abortions or it means that there are more pregnancies overall. what this data shows is that there are more pregnancies overall. >> reporter: indeed, the report also showed the 1% increase in abortions in 2006. the cdc is expected to release additional teen pregnancy data later this spring. erica edwards, nbc news. >> the state is reporting the highest rates of teen pregnancy work new mexico, nevada, arizona and texas. more people will pay with debit cards than cash in two years from now. you ould know what your banks charge you. some started charging $1 every time you use your pin number. others charge $29 or more when you overdraw your account. regulating credit cards -- banks are looking to make up for lost

revenue by adding fees to debit cards. apple is going to roll out a new computer tomorrow. intablet will run on many of the same apps that work on the iphone and the ipod touch. two people could play games on the tablet at the same time. the price is expected to be several hundred dollars. ahead on "news4 at 4," happy birthday times eight. she captivated the nation with her babies. now she's celebrating their lives one year later. and "avatar" breaks yet another record. qgqgixo jim graham is about to address the issue of two metro

workers killed this morning. >> i'm joined by the chief of metro transit police department. and the chief of staff for metro. i have a brief statement which i'd like to read. our hearts go out to the family members of mr. jeff garrard and some sung oh who were fatally struck early this morning by a metro vehicle while performing track repairs on the outbound track between rockville and shady grove. we have reached out to their familiesnd are arranging for someone at metro to be on call 24/7 to offer assistance with their needs during this tragic time. the national transportation safety board is the lead investigating body related to this morning's tragedy.

and they will be giving investigative details as they're able to release them. last week we held a meeting with safety experts from other transit agencies to gain from their experience so that we can put our collective measures in place to prevent this from happening again. on behalf of the board of directors of metro, i can assure you that those best safety practices will be adopted here. from everything we know at this point, this great tragedyas a direct result of human error. i'm not prepared to go into details on that. but i did want to say that much to you today. and now i'd like to have our chief of police to come forward, chief taborn. >> thank you, mr. graham. as mr. graham indicated, to the fellow employees that we lost today, two great employees, mr.

garrard and mr. oh, we have experienced deep sympathies and condolences to the family members. at 1:45 this morning, these two workers were employees who were fixing and repairing a line up on the redline tracks near rockville. unbeknownst to them, a train, a car, a truck that is capable of traveling on the right of way on the rail tracks as well as on the highway backed up and struck the two employees, causing their deaths. the national transportation safety board has indicated by mr. graham, who is the lead investigator in this particular case. we are working diligently as all employees of this agency to address all safety concerns. as indicated by mr. graham, two wes ago we had representatives from the bay area rapid transit, septa, new york city transit working together with the

federal transit administration and internal wmata employees. we're working to create a plan that would include training, certifications and a host of other issues to address this problem. again, we have deepest sympathies and our heart goes out to the family members of the two employees. [ inaudible ] we have some of those initiat e initiatives that are already under way. we will be responding to the tristate oversight committee in regards to their report that was dated december 31st. we will provide the corrective actions full of 18 findings that were associate would the previous audit on december 3rd and december 10thdri. [ inaudible ] as a result of participation

with the peer groups, we've notified training initiatives, we've identified ways to enhance and improve our rules. many of the rules were identified through the peer group members that they were even better than the ones that were in place in their respective agencies. we're looking to increase our communications, look at the data, look at all sources of things that will allow us to identify and pinpoint possible causes of problems that related to the safety of our employees as well as the patrons that ride our system. >> you are listening in to a press conference about the ntsb, being the lead agency here. more training needs to happen for metro workers. you heard jim graham say that this tragedy was a direct result of human error.

welcome back, everyone. some of the hot topics on the web today. the world's longest-living set of octuplets are now a year old. the children of nadya suleman are celebrating the day with a bash at her california home. suleman's lawyer says the babies are healthy and growing daily. the film about michael jackson's attempted comeback has made its dvd debut. "this is it" went on sale at midnight. it features back-stage footage of micha jackson just before

his death last summer. leonardo icaprio may be king of the world in "titanic," but now "avatar" is the highest-grossing movie ever. both movies made by -- directed by james cameron. it's a new road block to distracted driving. officials hapassed new rules to cut down on the practice of texting behind the wheel. jay gray takes a closer look. >> reporter: this security video from inside and outside a bus in texas is graphic evidence of just how dangerous texting while driving can be. >> cannot be texting. you cannot lose focus. it's about making sure you get your passengers to where they need to be safely and efficiently. >> reporter: and to try and make sure that happen, the u.s.

transportation department is sending a strong metssage of it own. >> we don't merely expect you to share the road responsibly with other travelers. we will require you to do so. >> reporter: beginning today, any driver of a large truck or bus caught sending or reading text messages behind the wheel will face a major fine. >> laws must depend in part on drivers who use their own good judgment and common sense. we also know that penalties act as a deterrent. >> reporter: studies show that drivers who text take their offs the road for more than four seconds out of every six seconds they're sending a message. driving at 55 miles an hour, they would travel the length of a football field, including the end zones, without looking where they're going. drivers who text are more than 20 times more likely to get into an accident than those who don't, which is why many want the new measure to cover even more of the road. >> we need to stop all motorists, not just truck and bus drivers, from texting behind

the wheel. >> reporter: the key, some believe, to a much safer trip for everyone. jay gray, nbc news. >> the new rules today feature fines of up to $2,750 for commercial drivers caught violating them. we'll see you again in 12 hours. that's it for "news4 at 4." "news4 at 5" starts right now. two metro workers killed on the redline. it is the latest in a series of accidents that have caused federal lawmakers to question the safety of the entire metro system. and tonight, families are in mourning, the loss of their loved ones over a communication mixup. good evening. i'm wendy rieger. >> i'm jim vance. we'll have more on that story in just a moment. but first, police have locked down the takoma park campus of montgomery college

while they search for a suspect in a sex assault. the assault happened this afternoon on campus. campus authorities want everyone to stay inside during their search. they're asking students who are not on campus right now to stay away. police have sent out an alert to students and the staff. joining us now by phone is montgomery college's media relations director, elizabeth holman. are you there, miss holman? she is not there. perhaps we'll get miss holman in some time. there's a lockdown in place at montgomery college. the takoma park campus. they're looking for a sexual assault suspect. now to the metro story. those employees that we were lking about earlier were technicians. the men were installing new train control equipment in the track bed on the red line in the direction of shady grove when they were hit at about quarter to two this morning near the rockville station.

>> from everything we know at this point, this great tragedy was a direct result of human error. and i am not prepared to go into details on that, but i did want to say that much to you today. >> we have crews covering every angle of this story from the victims to the affects of commuters. we begin with the vestigation, and that's chris gordon in southwest d.c. he has the latest. chris? >> well, here at the national transportation safety board headquarters, the investigator in charge briefed us ts evening. he said a preliminary finding has already been made that wmata assigned two separate crews to the same area. that raises a lot of questions. chief among them, was there a breakdown in communications? here's the latest. investigators say two separate crews were on the same track. a